Track & Field

Memorable Performances for Track & Field at SCIAC Multi-Dual

Mar 03, 2018

REDLANDS, Calif. (Mar. 3, 2018) – The Caltech track & field team came together for its first SCIAC Multi-Dual of the young season, hosting the meet at the University of Redlands on Saturday. A slew of new additions to the Top 10 lists combined with some personal best performances in the face of wet and windy conditions headlined the Beavers' day.

"It was great to see our team embrace their competitive opportunity this weekend," Head Coach Ben Raphelson said. "Many surprised themselves with career-best performances despite the cooler windy conditions. As coaches, we're really excited about the trajectory of our season."

The Beavers competed against schools such as California Lutheran University and Whittier College in addition to Redlands.

Perhaps the most notable Caltech showing of the event came when frehsman sprinter Nora Griffith (Santa Cruz, Calif. / Santa Cruz) took to the track in the women's 100m dash. The freshman crossed the finish line at 13.06, good for fifth-place among nine SCIAC runners. Griffith's time is the fastest in school history, but will not count for record purposes due to a tailwind near 50 percent more than the allotted amount. Griffith also competed in the 100m hurdles and took with her a fourth-place finish that came in just a hundredth of a second off the runner ahead of her (16.76). The freshman's hurdles time, however will count towards third place on the program's all-time top 10 list. Griffith later teamed with freshman Netra Ravishankar (Fremont, Calif. / American), junior Michelle Marasigan (Elk Grove Village, Ill. / James B. Conant) and junior Melissa Gutierrez (Pico Rivera, Calif. / El Rancho) in the 4x400m relay and made a push for the school record, crossing the line in 4:18.2, just four seconds behind the 13-year Caltech record. The women's 1500m run saw another top-five finish happen for the Beavers when freshman Molly Crotteau (Chicago, Ill. / Walter Payton) ran a 5:10.83 to take fourth in her only event of the day.

Sophomore thrower Alexa Lauinger (Ortonville, Mich. / Brandon) added to the theme of standout performances on the women's side in her 2018 track & field debut coming off basketball season. Lauinger set a new PR in the hammer throw (92'7") and moved up to fourth on the all-time Caltech hammer throw list. Lauinger also competed in the shot put and discus throw, along with junior Muskaan Goyal (Apple Valley, Minn. / Eastview) to complete a successful return to throwing. Goyal, meanwhile added a PR of her own in the hammer throw with 67'4", which is also good for seventh on the all-time list.

On the men's side, freshman thrower Daniel Rostovtsev (Swarthmore, Pa. / Strath Haven) set a new program best for 2018 when he hit 88'7" to improve on his personal best mark. On the track, sophomore Jesse Cai (McLean, Va. / Thomas Jefferson Science and Technology) had himself a day, picking up top-five finishes in both the men's 100m (11.52) and 200m (23.21) while also setting new top times for Caltech in both events. Later, freshman Michael Brown (Swarthmore, Pa. / Strath Haven), freshman Matthew Earney (San Diego, Calif. / Del Norte), sophomore Tiger Lu (Shanghai, China / Shanghai American School Puxi) and sophomore Alex Lettenberger (Glen Ellyn, Ill. / Glenbard West) set a new top mark for the 2018 Beavers in the 4x400 relay. The quartet finished the race in 3:38.80, just four seconds off the team from Cal Lutheran.

Raphelson and the Beavers will now begin preparation for next Saturday's Oxy Invite, set to begin at 9 a.m. on Mar. 10.